Improvement in reducing wood to paper-pulp



llamen STATESv PATE@ IMPROVEMENT IN REDUCING WOOD TO.PAPERPULP.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 55,031, dated May 22, 1866.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, HENRY VoEL'rER, of /Viirtemberg, Germany, have invented certain Improvements in Apparatus for Reducing -Woody Fibers to Paper-Pulp; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being` had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

My invention relates to certain improvements in an apparatus for which Letters Patent of the United States were granted to me on the 10th day of August, 1858, and the said improvements consist in certain devices, con# structed and operating substantiallyr as described hereafter, whereby blocks of wood may be thoroughly disintegrated and the fibers thus obtained be assorted in classes according to their different degrees of tineness.

In order to enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention', I will now proceed to describe its construction and operation.

On reference to the accompanying drawin g,

. which forms apart of this specification, Figures 1 and 2, Drawing No. 1, are sectional elevations of parts of myiinproved apparatus for reducing wood fibers to paper-pulp 5 Figs. 3 and 4, plan views of Figs. 1 and 2, Fig. 5, a detached View of part ofthe apparatus 5 Fig. 6, Drawing No. 2, a sectional elevation of another portion of the apparatus, and Fig. 7 a plan View of Fig. (i.

Similar letters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

0n a suitable foundation, A, Fig. 1, rests an oblong box, B, and to opposite sides of the latter are secured quadrant-shaped frames G C', in -which turn the shafts D, E, E', and F.

To the shaftD is secured a grindstone, D', and to each ofthe shafts E E' is secured a conical pulley, 2, abelt, 4, passing round both pulleys and through the forked ends of a guide, 5, which is adjustable laterally on a screw-shaft, 6.

On the shaft E is a pulley, 7, and on the shaft F turns a pulley, 9, a belt, 8, passing round both pulleys, and to the shaft F, adjacent to the pulley 9, is secured a ratchet-wheel7 a, to

-the teeth of which is adapted the end of a spring-pawl, b, attached to the pulley 9.

Through an opening in a cross-piece, 10, ex-

tending between the side frames, passes a screwed rod, 11, the said rod also passing through a wormwheel, 12, which bears against the' crosspiece, and is operated by a worm, 13,

011 the shaft F.

sides of the rod l1, and have threadscut in their edges, the said threads being adapted to the thread on the rod.

To a cross-head, 15, which slides on guides 16, attached to the side frames, lis secured a box, c, containing a rubber spring or cushion, d, and against the latter bears a disk, 17, on the rod 11, which projects through the cushion and through the bottom of the box, a nut on the lower end of thc rod preventing the withdrawal of the latter. p

To' the lower side of the cross-head 15 is secured a wooden block, e, the face of which, near the lower edge, is cut awa-y, as shown in Fig. 1, for a purpose described hereafter.

To the side fra-mes are secured two hollow adjustable cross-pieces or boxes, G G', each of which communicates with a water-reservoir, and in the lower edge of each box, which is nearly in contact with the face of the stone D', is a narrow slit or opening, x. The adjacent sides ofthe boxes Gr G', near their lower edges, are parallel, and are such a distance apart as to permit the ready introduction between them of the block e.

A rake, H, extends from the bottom of the box B to one side of the grindstone D', and at the bottom of the box, below the opposite side ofthe stone, is a projection, fi, of the form shown in Fig. 1. f

On a shelf or partition, 18, at the end of the box B, rests a sieve, J, the upper portion of which is inclosed by a casing, 19, secured to the side frames and to the edge ofthe box. Two pipes, K and K', communicate with this end of the box B, the former above, and the latter below, the partition 18.

On a frame-work, A', Fig. 6, rest three tanks, L, L', and L2, andin the tank Lishun g a basket, I), of Wire-gauze or other suitable material, arms ff, which project from the said basket, bearing on ratchet-wheels g, secured to a shaft, Q, turning in brackets attached to the tank.

In the tank L revolves a cylinder, R, of wiregauze, which'communicates at one end with areservoir, S, Fig. 7, at the side ofthe tank, a pipe, T, leading from the said reservoir and communicating with the tank L', near the bottom of the latter.4

To arms t' i, secured to a revolving shaft, j, turning in bearings attached to the tank L, is secured a comb, k, and to arms t' f, hung to brackets l l,ris secured a plate, m, for a `purpose described hereafter.

In the upper portion of the tank L' turns a shaf't on which is secured a fluted or serrated roller, U, and above the latter is a hopper, V, in guides, on one of the inclined sides of which slides a plate, n, the lower edge of the latter being parallel to the face of the roller. The tank L' is divided by a vertical partition, o, which extends nearly to the bottom into two unequal-sized chambers, x w', and in the lower portion of the former turns a paddle-wheel, W. From the upper edge of the tank L' extends an inclined plate or chute, p, and below the latter, in the tank L2, rotates a hollow cylinder, R', of wire-gauze, which communicates through an opening in one end with a reservoir, S', Fig. 7, at the side of the tank.

In the lower portion of the tank L2, below the chute p., revolves a paddle-wheel, W', `and, to a shaft, q, which turns in suitable bearings secured to the tank, is attached a smaller pad-` d1e-'whee1, r, the upper end of an inclined chute,L s, being secured to the edge ofthe tank adja-l cent to the paddle-wheel r. g

On a platform, M, supported by pillars M' M', rests the lower stone., N, of a pair of mill-` stones, the upper millstone, N', being hung to 'and rotating with a vertical shaft, O, in the ordinary manner, and into the usual central opening in this stone projects the lower end of the chute s. The upper stone, N', is Ysurrounded by a casing, t, an opening at one side of which communicates with a box or reservoir, S2, secured to the platform M.

On the frame-work A2, Fig. 2,*rest the tanks Y, Y', and Y2, and in the former is a vertical sieve, fu, and a partition, w, the latter extending across the upper portion only of the tank. On one side of the sieve u revolves a paddlewheel, W2, and from the opposite side of the tank a chute, 31, projects over a cylinder, R2, of wire-gauze, which revolves in the tank Y'.

The cylinder R2 communicates, through an opening in one end, with a reservoir, S3, Fig. 4, a pipe, T3, communicating with the latter and with the tank Y2, in which turns a cylinder, R3, which communicates with a reservoir,

S4, and against both this cylinder and the cyl-4 inder R2 bear rollers y y, on the ends ot' which are bands l1., of leather or other suitable material, a stationary plate, z, being secured at the side of each roller. In the tank Y2 turns a paddle-wheel, W2.

The pipe K, Figs. l and 7, communicates with a pipe, T', leading from the reservoir S', and also with the reservoir S2, and from the 4latter extends a pipe, K2, which communicates with the tank Y.

The material owing through'the pipe K' is discharged into the basket P, a pump or other suitable apparatus being used to elevate the material when the tank L is above the box B.

mitted to each of the said boxes and into the tank B, and a rotary motion in the direction of its arrow is imparted to each of the shafts D, E, E', and F. A rotary motion in the direction of its arrow is also imparted to each of the shafts Q, j, q, and O, to the paddlewheels W, W', W2, and W3, to the cylinders U, R, R', R2, and R3, and to the rollers y, y. As the worm-wheel 12 is turned the jaws 14 14, acting as a revolving nut, will cause the rod l1 to be moved forward, the block e being brought against the sections z and feeding the latter slowly toward thev grindstone by which they are disintegrated ,the fibrous particles th us detached being carried into the box B. The u-ndue pressure ofthe wood against the stone is prevented by theelastic cushion d, which also yields slightly to permit the wood to accommodate itself to inequalities in the stone, while the wed ging of the blocks between the boxes G G', which occurs when the said boxes approach each other toward the bottom, (as in my patented apparatus before alluded to,) is prevented by making the adjacent sides of the boxesparallel. The speed of the forward movement of the rod 1l in proportion to that of the stone is regulated by adjusting the belt 4 ou the pulleys 2, the spring-pawl b, through the medium of which motion is conveyed from the pulley 9 to the shaft F, being suflciently rigid to retain its hold on the ratchet-wheel l so long as no unusual resistance is offered to the forward movement of the rod 1l and thecross-head. When, however, the blocks of wood are not disintegrated with sufficient rapidity, or the forward movement of the rod 11 is otherwise interrupted or retarded, the pawl b will yield and slip over the teeth of the ratchet-wheel, the rattling noise thus produced informing the attendant of the necessity of readjusting the belt 4 to diminish the speed of the shaft F. As the block e is brought near the face ofthe stone that portion of the wood beneath the inclined face ofV the block will be cut to a wedge-shape, the thick edge being toward the box G'. By this means small 'particles of wood are prevented `from being wedged into the narrow space between the box G' and the stone, to the retardation of the revolution of the latter. 'Ihe tlner fibers of the wood are `carried by the revolution of the stone between 'with the water thrown up bythe stone, and

ratchet-wheels g as will. prevent the meshes.

from becoming obstructed. The linest bers pass with the water into the gauze cylinder R,

and out of the latter into the reservoir S, and

v through the pipe T, to the tank L', the coarser fibers being` carried by the action of the cylinder R within range ofthe rotating comb lr, by which they are caught and carried upward until the comb strikes the plate m. As the comb continues to revolve the plate in slides forward and scrapes off the adhering fibers, which fall into any suitable receptacle, the tank L being thus cleared of the useless fibers which would obstruct the action of the cylinder. After the contents of the reservoir S are introduced into the tank L' th ey are thoroughly agitated and mixed by the action of the paddle-wheel IV, a mash being' thus produced, which is directed upward through the chaluber X' and onto the chute p, from which it falls onto the cylinder R. The filiertilaments, which pass through the cylinder R', are conveyed into the reservoir S', and through the pipe T' into the reservoir S2, while the mash which remains in the tank is mashed and agitated by the paddlewheel W', and is directed by the paddle-wheel r into the chtite s, down which it flows into the opening in the Lipper inillstone, N'. As the fibers pass between the millstones they are split and broken into fine filaments, the stones 'being so prepared that the fibers may be cut rather than worn. The fibers, after being reduced to a pulpy mass, pass from the stones into the casin g b and then into the reservoir S2. The pulp flows from the reservoir S2, through the pipe K2, into the tank Y, where it is directed by the paddle-wheel W2 against the sieve u, the finest fibers passing through the latter and upward to the chtite 3l, from which they fall onto the cylinder R2, the bers which pass into this cylinder being conducted to the reservoir S3 and through the pipe T3 to the tank Y2. The. pulp in the tank Y' is agitated by the paddle-wheel W3, so that every portion may be brought into contact with the cylinder. The gauze on the cylinder R3 is too fine to permit any of the libers to pass through thel saine. The superfluous water, however, flo ws into the cylinder and into the reservoir S4, from which it-is removed by a siphon or. other suitable apparatus. As the cylinders R2 R3 revolve the tibers on the surfaces of the same are transferred to the rollers y y, and after being scraped from the latter by the plates z, fall into any suitable receptacle, the leather bands h It, at the ends ofthe rollers, maintaining the surfaces ofthe same from contact with those of the cylinders, lwhich are thus preserved from abrasion. The coarse fibers, detached by the plate z, as well as those remaining` in the tanks YY', are placed in the hopper Vrfrom which they are fed into the tank L' by the tluted roller U, the sliding plate a being adjusted to regulate the passage of the fibers in such quantities as may be desired. These bers are discharged from the tank L into the tank L2, and after passing between the millstones are sorted in the tanks Y, Y', and Y2, as before. It' fibers are required which are not so nely divided as those which pass into the tank Y2, they may be removed at any stage of the process, and it will be apparent that any desired number oftanks and cylinders may be employed in order to obtain a greater assortment of fibers.

Instead ot" arranging the cylinders as described they niay be placed with their shafts inclined, and the material may be introduced into the interiors of the cylinders, the finer particles passing through the latter into the tanks, while thevcoarser fibers are rolled toward the lower end and discharge into any suitable receptacle.

A perforated pipe communicating with a water-reservoir may be arranged adjacent to each of the cylinders and sieves, so as to throw a constant stream of water onto thesame and thus maintain the meshes unobstructed.

Although I have shown and described a pair of horizontal millstones as being'employed for dividing the bers, the stones may-be arranged vertically or iu any other suitable position. They may also be conical, fitting one within the other, orv of any other desired shape.

In place of the paddle-wheel r, for directing the mash from the tank L2 into the chtite s, cords may be wound spirally round the cylinder R', so that as the latter revolves the material is caused to iow toward one side of the tank.

I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent- Y 1. The use of millstones N N', constructed and operating substantially as described, for reducing particles of wood to paper-pulp.

2. 4The combination of the rake H, projection I, sieve J, and pipes K and K' with the box B and stone D',the whole being arranged and operating substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. The spring-pawl b and ratchet-wheel t constructed and operatin g in combination with the shaft F and pulley 9, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

4t. An elastic cushion or spring, d, in combination with the cross-head l5 and rod 1l, for the purpose set forth.

5. The block c, formed substantially as described, in combination with the stone D' and boxes G G', the whole being arranged and operating substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

6. The boxes or cross-pieces GG' ,constructed with parallel sides, for the purpose specified.

7. The tanks L, L', and L2, with their gauze cylinders R and R', and paddle-wheels W W', the whole being constructed and'arranged for joint operation, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

8. The vibrating basket P, arranged and operating in the tank L, for the purpose described.

9. The rotating comb 7c and the scrapingplate m, in combination with the cylinder R, the whole being constructed and operating substantially as and for the purpose specified.

10. The hopper V, with its sliding door a,

. and rotating tinted cylinder U, arranged in ble material, secured to the rollers yy, for thel respect to the tank L2 substantially as and for purpose specified. the purpose described. In testimony whereof I have signed my name ll. The tanksY,Y/, and Y2, with their gauze to this speeioation before two subscribing cylinders R2 and R3, paddle-Wheels W2 W3, Witnesses.

` sieve fu, rollers y, and plates z, the Whole being HEINR. VOELTER.

constructed and operating substan tiallyas and Witnesses for the purpose set forth. L. VEBERT,

12. The bands h h, of leather or other suita- C. MARRIEL. 

